Awards - Forest soil is "Soil of the Year 2024"
Forests are considered important factors in the fight against the climate crisis - the forest soil as a foundation has therefore been chosen as "Soil of the Year 2024". This was announced by the Thünen Institute in Braunschweig together with the Soil of the Year Board of Trustees on Tuesday on the occasion of World Soil Day (December 5).
Forest soils are not only important for trees, but also play an important role for the biodiversity of living organisms. "They are also an important carbon store," the Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forests and Fisheries (Thünen Institute) explained. By forming humus, forest soils store large amounts of organic carbon and stabilize the climate. In addition, clean drinking water is made possible by the filter and buffer function of forest soils.
The scientists pointed out that the proportion of forest soils in Germany has decreased significantly due to arable farming. Forests are usually located on nutrient-poor and stony soils, which makes them particularly sensitive. For many years, the forest soil has been damaged by heavy metals and nutrient depletion. Climate change is having a massive impact on the forest, with forests in areas as large as Saarland already dying off due to drought stress and tree diseases.
The soils of the forest are dynamic, extremely lively habitats that help to keep the forests in balance, said Federal Minister of Agriculture Cem Özdemir (Greens) as patron. 2023 was the "Soil of the Year".
Info on the soil of the year
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Source: www.stern.de
